


Something Happens

by kokofas



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Also these tags are slowly becoming shitposts I'm sorry, Angst, College Life, Drama, F/M, FTM Nishinoya Yuu, Friendship/Love, Future Drunken Consent, Japanese college is totally Americanized by my white-washed ass I'm sorry, M/M, Multi, Noya definitely watches conspiracy theory movies in his pastime, Post-High School, These characters do not know proper nutrition, hinted Body Dysphoria
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-27
Updated: 2017-05-29
Packaged: 2018-10-11 18:50:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10471668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kokofas/pseuds/kokofas
Summary: If one were to look for a piece of common knowledge on the Tokyo University campus, and it was a large campus, the first one would certainly be that Asahi Azumane and Nishinoya Yuu were inseparable. After the latter one joined the university last year, the two would constantly be seen together, and if they weren’t, one only needed to ask one of them for the whereabouts of the other, because he was surely to know all the possible locations the other would be.But, what happens when someone comes in to ruin this picture for Nishinoya Yuu? And what happens when he realizes, albeit too late, that maybe he likes Asahi Azumane a little (a lot) more than he'd like to admit?





	1. Chapter 1: Gut Feeling

If there was anything 19-year-old Nishinoya Yuu regretted at 7:50 AM on a Monday morning, it was signing up for lectures _at 8 AM on a Monday morning_. He wasn’t the least bit surprised by this regret though, recalling the multitudes of risky, and consequently bad decisions he has made in his short lifetime. But this decision, it was definitely the worst one, with his decision to forego paying for on-campus meals coming in second. Why? Because it was ten minutes to class, and all he had stocked in his dorm fridge was a half-eaten CLEF bar from approximately two months ago.

As a result, Nishinoya Yuu burst out of his dorm building dressed in his old, worn-out high-school sweatpants, a Muscle-T spotted with various food stains, and mismatched socks under his battered tennis shoes. His old messenger bag, a gift given to him by his dad just before he left for college, swung with all its heavy contents as it miraculously remained anchored on his shoulder while he ran across campus to the lecture hall. He silently cursed all the good and bad spirits around for giving him a dorm room so far away from the main building, a deep frown set into his brows as he stormed his way through the crowds of students. Running up the stairs within the building, he slowed his pace down to fake a slow walk, quietly turning the handle to the door of his lecture hall, the sight of an empty lecture hall welcoming him.

“What?” He exclaimed to himself in confusion. He glanced down at his watch, reading the time and date on it. He wasn’t mistaken, it was supposed to be class-time. Furrowing his brows, he suspiciously made his way down to the center of the hall and scooted into one of the seats. He didn’t know what was going on, but maybe the professor had taken the people who were already there somewhere. He couldn’t do anything about that, and so he decided to wait them out.

Nishinoya’s head was just about to slip off his palm and slam into the desk under him when the bang of the lecture hall door resounded through the hall, and a stream of people began to trickle in. He blinked the drowsiness out of his eyes and looked around, watching as everyone chatted their way to their seats and took their place. If it was possible, he was even more perplexed, but his line of sight of the others was interrupted as a tall brunette with a loosely piled hair bun plopped down beside him with a sigh, peering into his face.

“Noya, are you okay?” Asahi pushed his face even closer, inspecting Nishinoya’s disoriented one. “You look like you just dropped into a whole other universe.”

“Why is everyone coming in now?” Nishinoya frowned in confusion.

“It’s 8 AM. Class starts now.”

“No, it was 8 AM an hour ago.” He countered, a little irritated that Asahi thought he was too dumb to read the watch on his wrist. He glanced at it again though, just to be sure.

“No, it’s not. Have you looked at your phone today?” Asahi asked, a small smile beginning to form on his lips. _Shit_. Nishinoya patted his pockets, feeling for his phone, before dropping his head onto the back of the seat.

“I forgot it, this is _great_.” He groaned in desperation.

“Then I guess you don’t realize the clocks moved back an hour last night.” He smiled even wider at Nishinoya’s confused expression. “Daylight Savings Time, remember?”

“Are you telling me, that I just wasted an entire hour of possible precious sleep, sitting here in this dumb ass lecture hall _a whole hour too early_?” Nishinoya hissed, his soul dying inside. He didn’t need to make that wild run across campus in the morning. _He could have gone to get breakfast_.

“Look on the bright side, you seized the day…?” Asahi tried, leaning away as Nishinoya raised his hand in a gesture that threatened to slap his face into next week. “Come on, it’s not that bad. Everyone gets to experience being the first at the lecture hall at least once in college.”

“That,” Nishinoya began as the professor finally appeared, turning on the projector as she laid down her briefcase. “was never an aspiration of mine.”

“Hey look, waking up early has taught you some big words!” Asahi teased. Nishinoya scowled and jabbed the older man’s upper arm with his elbow, drawing a hushed yelp from him. Smiling in satisfaction, he settled back and turned his attention to the professor.

* * *

 

“I swear, art theory is _so boring_.” He complained as he walked out of the lecture hall with Asahi, his messenger bag hitting his upper thigh with each step he took.

“You know, I think you’re the only art student on earth who thinks that about art theory.” Asahi remarked as he glanced down at his phone, checking for notifications. “It’s not that bad, really.”

“It’s not that bad for you, because engineering majors only have to attend once a week. I have to go _three times_.” Nishinoya sighed dramatically as they walked out of the building’s double doors, guiding them to the stone railing beside the stairs and settling, cross-legged, onto the top part of it.

“Maybe you should have gone for engineering then.” Asahi replied as he pocketed his phone, lifting himself onto the platform where Nishinoya was sat.

“Right, and walk right into my death as Calculus takes over 99% of my life?” Nishinoya snorted. “No thanks, I’ll stick to art.” He huffed, leaning back onto Asahi, who supported his weight with his right shoulder. “I’m going to use you as my pillow now, goodnight.”

“Uh, no can do, I promised Daichi that we’d play a little volleyball in half an hour.” Asahi said, though allowed Nishinoya to rest his weight onto him. The younger man was so small, it barely felt like anything anyway.

“Hey, how come you agree to play with Daichi but always ignore my ass?” Nishinoya protested, turning around to pout in his face.

“Because Daichi is an honorable player that _doesn’t cheat_.” Asahi pointed out, watching Nishinoya roll his eyes in response.

“Asahi, just because I beat you every time doesn’t mean I’m cheating. I can’t help it if I’m just that good and you’re just that bad.”

“I’m not _bad_ , I have ethics.” Asahi bit out.

“Oh yeah? Then prove it.” Nishinoya replied, lifting himself off of Asahi and turning his entire body to face the man this time. “I challenge you to a match to the death.”

“No death, please.”

“Okay, no death, but a match to buying the other person coffee for a week.” Nishinoya corrected.

“That sounds better. But you’re still going to lose.” Asahi smiled, shouldering his backpack as he jumped off the railing and stood up straight.

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t worry Asahi, I’ll be sure to paint you some nice, sore loser paintings to help you with your mourning.” Nishinoya grinned, grabbing his bag and hopping to Asahi’s side as the two made their way to the outdoor volleyball court.

* * *

 

If one were to look for a piece of common knowledge on the Tokyo University campus, and it was a large campus, the first one would certainly be that Asahi Azumane and Nishinoya Yuu were inseparable. After the latter one joined the university last year, the two would constantly be seen together, and if they weren’t, one only needed to ask one of them for the whereabouts of the other, because he was surely to know all the possible locations the other would be.

If one dug deeper for another piece of common knowledge, it would be that _everyone_ had to stay clear of the outdoor court when Asahi Azumane and Nishinoya Yuu played ball, unless they wanted to be directly in the line of fire as the two battled each other. As a result, the court quickly cleared of people as the two of them arrived at the bench next to it, and by the time they had both taken off their bags, watches and light autumn jackets, it was completely empty and ready for them.

“Are you ready to get your ass handed to you?” Nishinoya had a shit-eating grin on his face as he picked up a Mikasa ball right under the bench.

“Let’s watch you get the ball over the net first.” Asahi grinned back, avoiding a ball to the head as Nishinoya threw it his way. “Okay, okay, no jabs at your height.”

“Yeah, that’s better.” Nishinoya said, walking across the court to take out another ball.

“Get a Molten, they’re better.” Asahi called, releasing his hair from the loose hair bun it was in to tie it into a tight ponytail, watching Nishinoya rummage through the basket full of balls.

“Hell no, Mikasa is good luck.” Nishinoya replied, walking back to the center back of his side of the court. “Are you really going to play in combat boots?”

“It’s a free country, Noya.” Asahi shrugged. “Now serve the ball already, I have class in an hour.”

“Alright, kiss your honor goodbye, my friend.” Nishinoya smirked, his right leg forward and his left leg bent as he went for an underhand serve, whistling in appreciation as the ball flew over the net and to the front center of Asahi’s side of the court, forcing the taller man to scramble towards it. He was just about the cheer, when Asahi saved it and sent it back to _his_ front center, giving him a sweet smile as he watched him uselessly fling himself to the ground to receive it.

“You stole my line.” Asahi laughed, catching the ball to play his serve.

* * *

 

“One day, the spirits above will realize that you’re a big cheater and will punish your entire bloodline for this.” Asahi panted as he collapsed on the bench, wiping the sweat off his brow using his shirt sleeve.

“No offense guys, but I highly doubt the spirits care about your volleyball matches.” Daichi commented as he walked towards them, jacket slung on one shoulder as the heat of spring afternoons made itself known. “You did make a nice kill before that last play though, Asahi, you should join the college club.”

“I keep telling him to, but he ignores me.” Nishinoya scowled at Asahi as he waited for him to finish with the water bottle, before snatching it from his hand and gulping down what remained in it.

“Eh, Engineering is busy enough as it is. I don’t have the commitment to stick to a club sport right now.” Asahi rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m sorry we couldn’t play just now though, someone here wanted to prove a point.” He smiled sheepishly.

“And the point was proven, I am the god of volleyball.” Nishinoya exclaimed, lifting his foot onto the bench and inflating his chest in an attempt to look grand.

“Don’t worry about it, watching Nishinoya beat you is always fun.” Daichi grinned, laughing as Asahi pouted in dejection. “Are you heading to the engineering building now?” He asked, watching as Asahi slipped his backpack back onto his shoulder and stood to full height, yawning as he did.

“Yep, we’re handing in our prototypes today. Mr. Takahashi has had it out for me since last term, I’m hoping he likes this one, though.” Asahi sighed.

“That guy is an idiot. Your model was super cool, trust me, I’m an art student.” Nishinoya said, walking two steps for each step the other two men beside him took.

“ _So_ credible.” Daichi smirked.

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?” Nishinoya protested, raising a challenging eyebrow at Daichi.

“Nothing, you don’t have to fight everyone, Noya.” Asahi grabbed his wrist and pulled him back as he started for Daichi.

“That’s where you’re wrong, Asahi. I have to fight everyone, it’s in my blood.” Nishinoya gave up the pursuit of the upperclassman, hopping beside Asahi as they walked. “Speaking of which, I got my hands on a Tekken 5 treasure, major blast from the past. We have got to procrastinate with that one later today.” 

“I can’t, I’ve got a chem test tomorrow, but you two knock yourselves out.” Daichi replied, lifting his shoulders up apologetically as Nishinoya groaned.

“What about you? You up for it?” He looked up at Asahi, watching the sun wash his eyebrows into a golden-brown.

“Yeah, sure. I’ll try to finish my Ethics essay before then.” Nishinoya snorted.

“Nerd.” He smirked. “But okay. I’m going to go grab something to eat now, because I can feel my stomach devouring itself. You two have fun in hell!” He punched Asahi’s upper arm, bouncing away in the direction of the bike racks where he kept his own bicycle. Now that he had the time, he figured he might as well go and get some staples to tide him over the next month.

“Use a helmet!” Asahi shouted behind him, huffing a laugh as Nishinoya raised his middle finger in response. “He’s going to get himself killed one day.”

“And then our lives will be a lot quieter.” Daichi mused, smiling in amusement as he stood beside Asahi, the two of them watching the small man unlock his bike from the rack. “Now come on, class is about to start.”

* * *

 

At times, Nishinoya swore he had a sixth sense of some kind. Not one that was particularly flashy or useful, but one he wished he could be rid of. It was one where, at the approach of a particularly bad situation, his stomach would start knotting anxiously, and he would find his mind preoccupied with a misplaced feeling of dread. It was, in general, a horrible feeling, and what made it more horrible was his knowledge of how spot on it tended to be. He’d had this feeling when his little brother was first diagnosed with cancer, he’d had this feeling when he’d broken his foot three days away from his high school graduation, and he was having this feeling now as he arranged food inside of his bento box, on his way to meet his friends in the cafeteria, where they got their meals.

He took a shallow breath and exchanged it for a long sigh, an attempt at relieving the stress slowly building up within him, but he knew it was futile. Nothing could be done about this feeling, except waiting out whatever was causing it to exist.

So, with nothing else to do but be patient -something Nishinoya Yuu was known to be particularly bad at- he threw the sealed bento box into one of his worn out backpacks, and quickly stepped out of his dorm and into the evening dusk.

The campus smelled of grass and fresh summer nights, as the heat of the afternoon had finally subsided into gentle blows of cool air, ruffling the newly acquired pink leaves of the cherry blossoms scattered around the courtyard. He sighed again against his will; it sucked when upcoming dread ruined a beautiful day.

He whistled as he calmly made his way to the cafeteria. As he approached the outside, he spotted his friends sitting around one of the outdoor lunch tables, and his feet carried him to them, their loud conversation becoming decipherable as he got closer. He caught the tail-end of Bokuto exclaiming that someone was in love.

“Ooh, who’s in love?” He asked eagerly as he reached them, pushing the anxiety deep down in order to make way for some normal human interaction. He gestured to Bokuto to shift so he had some space to sit beside him, settling down and beginning to take out his Bento box.

“Asahi.” Kuroo replied, smirking around a cabbage roll he was chewing. Nishinoya nearly dropped his box and its contents onto the ground as he swiveled around, before kicking Kuroo under the table.

“Stop fucking around. Seriously, who is it?” He insisted, rummaging for his chopsticks. He felt a little sad as he looked at everybody else’s dinner. The dinner in the cafeteria seemed to be stir-fry, one of his favorites, but all he had managed to make was some rice and tofu in his rice cooker. It was better than nothing, but he was starting to feel that maybe he needed to reconsider his decision not to pay for meals starting next term. Maybe if he worked over the summer break...?

“He’s not joking, look at him.” Daichi said, subtly gesturing in the direction of Asahi, who was standing on the other side of the glass, inside the cafeteria, and was seemingly having an animated conversation -or as animated as a conversation with an anxious Asahi could get- with a girl Nishinoya had never seen before. He furrowed his brows in concentration, focusing on Asahi’s expression. If anyone knew how to read Asahi, it was him, and he knew for certain that he had never, in his entire nineteen years of life, seen Asahi look interested in someone.

And that was precisely what worried him, as he realized he was seeing an expression on Asahi’s face that he had never seen before. His facial features betrayed a range of emotions: Anxiety, excitement, tranquility, and genuine interest, and Nishinoya had no idea what to make of that. He had certainly never seen Asahi look both anxious and tranquil. Usually, it was one or the other.

He didn’t realize he had been staring intently until someone’s hand was waving in front of his face, and the laughs of the others quickly reached his ears. He quickly snapped out of it, scowling and shoving at Bokuto’s hand as he giggled at his distraction.

“He’s not in love, guys. He’s probably being nice to her. Is she new?” He asked.

“She’s the headmaster’s daughter apparently, transferring from some university in the US.” Kuroo answered, and Nishinoya was starting to get annoyed by the smug look on his face, although he knew it was a permanent feature of the man.

“Why would anyone transfer from the US to Tokyo?” Nishinoya snorted, feeling judgement bubble up in his chest as he watched the girl stand in the line for food with Asahi, still chatting.

“I dunno, missed home?” The black-haired male offered, shrugging as he took another bite of his stir-fry and chewed calmly. “Either way, she fit right into the class today, she even came with a prototype ready.”

“So she’s in civil engineering as well?” Daichi asked, glancing at the two through the glass before they turned around, the entire table looking away all at once.

“Yeah. She’s pretty good, actually.” Akaashi commented, the tone of his voice betraying some interest where the bored look on his face did not.

No way,” Bokuto began, “Akaashi just complimented someone in his class. I see why Asahi’s in love with her.” He grinned as Akaashi shot him a withering look.

“He’s not in love with her.” Nishinoya repeated insistently. “He’s really just being nice.” He made himself shrug in a seemingly nonchalant way.

“Well, I don’t know about you, but I’ve never been blown off by Asahi for any girl.” Kuroo remarked, nodding towards a table inside, where Asahi could be seen sitting with her. Something in Nishinoya’s chest twinged, and the next bite of chewed rice took extra effort for him to swallow down as his eyes narrowed to examine the situation. He didn’t know what was going on, but whatever it was, everything inside of him screamed that he definitely was not liking it.

“Damn, Nishinoya,” He heard Bokuto whistle beside him, “You look like you’re going to kill a bitch.”

“Nah,” Nishinoya attempted at being casual. “Just having a headache.” He lied easily, finally turning his gaze away from the two inside and focusing his attention on the food in front of him. The conversation around him flowed from one topic to the other, and for the first time in his college existence, Nishinoya Yuu was deathly quiet as he ate his dinner.

Before he knew it, he was already done with his food, and he cleared his throat as he packed his chopsticks and box away.

“Leaving already?” Daichi asked, watching him zip his bag up and sling it on one shoulder.

“Yeah, Tekken 5 night, remember?” He cracked his finger joints, smirking as Akaashi grimaced beside him, and purposefully made the last crack grotesquely loud.

“Ugh, stop it.” Akaashi groaned, dropping his chopsticks to push Nishinoya’s hands away from his ears.

“Wait, you’re playing Tekken 5?” Bokuto perked up, “Can I join?”

“We have studying to do.” Akaashi raised an eyebrow at the grey-haired male, narrowing his eyes as Bokuto waved him off.

“Not when there’s Tekken 5.”

“Damn straight.” Nishinoya grinned. “Anyway, yeah, sure. I’m going to check when Asahi wants to do it and I’ll text you.” Nishinoya began walking away from the table, stopping as Kuroo called out.

“Wait, you’re asking him now?” He asked.

“Yeah?” Nishinoya acted dumb. He refused to believe what the others were seeing. Asahi was simply making a new friend, and it was probably good to warn this new friend about Nishinoya’s position in the hierarchy of Asahi’s friend circle. He was clearly the top carnivore there. “See ya!”

He made his way to the interior area of the cafeteria, walking purposefully towards Asahi and the new girl. As he approached, he could hear Asahi excitedly retelling stories from their volleyball club in high school, and he felt a sour taste in his mouth at the thought of the girl knowing anything about their high school times.

“Hey.” He greeted simply, stopping beside the table. Asahi stopped his tale to look at him as the girl tried to calm down a little, diverting her attention to the new arrival.

“Hey!” Asahi greeted excitedly, turning to the girl. “This is Nishinoya, the guy I told you about.”

“The one who rolls the R in Rolling Thunder too much?” She asked, grinning in amusement.

“Yeah!” Asahi laughed, and the girl giggled a little. Nishinoya kept his openly friendly expression from falling as he listened to them laugh. It wasn’t that he wasn’t in on this joke. He himself was always the one to roast himself about his ridiculous volleyball moves’ names from high school. However, this girl was _certainly_ not in on this joke, and he found himself resisting the urge to shove Asahi for telling her something that was clearly private.

“Yep, that’s me.” He smiled tightly.

“Oh, sorry.” Asahi said, covering his mouth as a small hiccup bubbled up, probably from laughing while eating. “This is Aiko. She’s the headmaster’s daughter, and she makes some _awesome_ engineering models, Nishinoya, you have got to see them.”

“They’re really not that good.” She followed up quickly, though Nishinoya could tell she didn’t believe that herself. She radiated with confidence, that much he could tell, as someone who was pretty confident himself. A strange sense of competition came over him, but he held it down as he attempted to smile wider at her.

“I’m sure they’re great, if Asahi-san thinks so.” He almost cursed himself at allowing formality to slip into his speech, but he could see that Asahi hadn’t noticed at all as he shifted his attention back to him. He had to smother the annoyance that came over him at that. He knew that, in any other situation, Asahi would have immediately picked up on Nishinoya’s feelings. Either way, that wasn’t what he was here for.

“So, I wanted to confirm: Tekken 5 at nine tonight?” He asked, looking into Asahi’s eyes with a look that threatened to kill if he turned him down.

“Um,” Asahi began unsurely, glancing at the girl in front of him before looking back at him. “Yeah, sure, would never miss it. Could Aiko join?”

“Do you like Tekken 5, Aiko?” Nishinoya looked at her.

“The video game? It’s a classic.” She answered, and he hated her a little for that. He had wanted so badly for her to answer with _What’s Tekken 5? A movie?_ Just so he would feel a little cooler, but no, she was cool, and he was progressively becoming more irritated with that.

“Cool.” He said a little too cheerfully. “Then you’re invited too, as long as you don’t mind the stench of boy dorms.” His hand went for the strap of his bag, clenching around it anxiously as he thought about the ways he could terminate this train wreck of a conversation now and go attempt to finish his art piece lying half-finished in the art room for his portfolio submission next week. “I gotta go now, I better see you two around.” He held up his fingers in a V in front of his eyes, before pointing them at the two, the silent threat of _I’ve got my eyes on you_ suspended in the air as he turned around and walked away.

As he used his student card to gain access to the art studio, he hoped that hadn’t seemed too aggressive. Although everything inside him urged him to be a bitch to Aiko, he knew that Asahi liked her, and that meant that he was likely to find her cool too. Sighing heavily for the millionth time that day, he took off his oversized denim jacket, sat down, and uncovered a half-finished painting of his mother and little brother on the beach in Miyagi, his mother’s sundress blowing in the direction of the wind

* * *

 

By the time it was nearing nine, Nishinoya had made no progress with the painting, and had instead wasted an entirely new canvas with haphazardly placed paint smears. It had been an act of passive aggression, he knew that, and he also knew that he’d wasted two hours of his life on being far too annoyed at someone he’d just met. He considered throwing the canvas into the waste bin, but then decided against it, and simply moved it to the side so no one accidentally tore through it later on somehow. He attempted to wash off as much of the paint on his fingers as possible, knowing it was in vain since the paint was almost inherently covering his hands now, before grabbing his belongings and exiting the building. It was dark out at this point, and he knew that a year before, he would have been totally confused with how to get to his dorm from here, what with the half-assed assistance the lights lining the paths gave. Having gotten used to blindly finding his way around this campus; however, he reached his dorm just as the clock hit nine.

He quickly dumped his things onto his bed and showered, knowing Asahi was going to be late. He slipped into his old Karasuno shirt and a pair of old basketball shorts, before settling into bed, his laptop supported on his lap. He looked at the time, noticing that it was already half past nine, and sighed in exasperation, reaching for his phone from his place and ringing Asahi up.

“Asahi, where the fuck are you?” He asked, his eyes scanning his facebook feed as his other hand scrolled down casually.

“Oh, Noya, don’t kill me, but there’s this cool party here-“

“Party?” Nishinoya interrupted, utterly confused. Asahi didn’t go to parties. He knew that, because he had spent his entire freshman year attempting to drag the man to various parties around campus, and always ended up hanging out in a park, or in one of their rooms instead.

“Yeah! It’s organized by Aiko’s dorm building, there’s a dorm specifically for engineering fanatics, did you know that? I think I’m going to apply for a room here next year.” Asahi rambled into the phone. “Anyway, you should come!”

“Dude, what about Tekken 5? You would never miss it? All that crap?” He felt the annoyance creep into his voice as he waited for Asahi’s response.

“But it’d really suck if I ditch Aiko here. But hey, let’s play it over the weekend, yeah?” Asahi offered. “You don’t mind, do you?”

Nishinoya took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. He didn’t own Asahi, he knew that. Asahi was a grown man, who was free to do whatever he wanted. Nishinoya was also a grown man, and that was why, instead of tapping into the frustration that was welling up inside him, he forced himself to smile into the phone, unseen, though definitely heard by Asahi.

“Of course not! Have fun, Asahi-san!” He said, hanging up before Asahi could finish his next sentence. He sighed, looking at the old Tekken 5 disc on his bedside table. His phone vibrated with a notification from Bokuto asking about the video game night, and he texted back that it was canceled before purposefully tucking his phone under his bed.

For the first time in his college existence, he wanted nothing more than to avoid humanity and simply marathon a few shows. As he numbly watched a comedy show, not laughing at any of the punchlines, he realized that the feeling in his gut had been about Aiko all along, and the feeling that he had just lost a friend began to poke at the sides of his consciousness.

 


	2. Jelly Donuts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nishinoya and Asahi get into a fight, but the pushing and prodding of those around them bring them back together. Nishinoya has a realization, and, despite a late sugary treat, his night ends on a sour note.

Laid down beside Asahi, Nishinoya wished he could grab the other man’s phone and hurl it out of the window. Instead, he settled for acting a little less douchey as he hit the spacebar on his computer’s keyboard to pause the movie they were watching.  
“You know, we don’t have to watch this if you don’t want to.” He said, turning to look at the man beside him. He tried to keep his annoyance in check as he watched Asahi remain unresponsive for a few beats, the stupid small smile that has been showing up on his face lately drawn across his lips. He tried to comfort himself with the fact that Asahi had still chosen to hang out with him tonight, and it wasn’t like they didn’t hang out otherwise. They still talked a lot of the time, and walked each other to classes often. It was just that, and Noya could see it, Asahi’s attention was always divided, with more of it distributed to Aiko than him.  
“Hmm?” Asahi hummed, before finally registering what Nishinoya had said to him and looking up at the paler man. “What? No. I swear I’m watching. Aiko just sent this hilarious meme. You wouldn’t get it though, it’s engineering stuff.”  
“Right.” Nishinoya commented drily, biting down onto his tongue to keep himself from giving any impulsive responses he knew Asahi wouldn’t take well. He watched Asahi look back down at his phone, and he looked towards the side in turn, inhaling deeply while his eyes observed the night sky outside the cracked window. “Actually,” He started, clearing his throat as he shifted on the bed, sitting more forward. “I think I’m going to go. I’m feeling tired. We can finish this later.”  
“Aw, come on, Noya! We’ve hardly hung out this week.” Asahi pouted, finally locking his phone screen to look at Noya as the shorter male started for his laptop, which Asahi blocked him from.  
“You make it sound like that’s my fault.” Nishinoya raised an eyebrow. “It’s not like we’re hanging out much right now with you texting the entire time, dude.”  
“You’re right, I’m sorry.” Asahi agreed. “Let me send this one last text and then I’m not touching my phone, I promise.” Nishinoya rolled his eyes. A part of him wanted to leave anyway, to make a statement of a sort, but he sighed instead, flopping down next to Asahi and allowing himself to lose that dignity battle. “Make it quick, or we’re switching back to the alien conspiracy theory movie.”  
“Noya, you know I'm scared of that one, please no.” Asahi pleaded, and Nishinoya smirked as he gestured for him to hurry up. Once done, he tucked his phone under the pillow, turning back to Nishinoya. “Legit hang out time starts now.”  
They resumed the movie, Asahi’s head leaning on Nishinoya’s shoulder, the smell of his shampoo invading Nishinoya’s olfactory senses as he focused on the film. For the first time since the week before last, when Aiko had entered the picture, he felt the calmness he usually felt around Asahi. This was how they were meant to be: Nishinoya and Asahi against the world. There was no room for somebody else. Sure, they had other friends, but they were lecture friends or cafeteria friends or drinking friends. They weren't the perfect fit, but they were adequate. But Asahi and Nishinoya, nothing was adequate about them. They were, for lack of a better metaphor, the chocolatey outside and the creamy, hazelnutty inside of a ferrero rocher. A perfect combination and, no offence, but what role could a third party play in that? The thin, flakey wafer layer that separated the two? It just wasn't significant enough of a role to be acknowledged. Simple as that.  
Nishinoya snapped out of his daydreaming as he felt Asahi lift himself off of him, a groan escaping the older man as the bones of his spine popped one after the other. He looked to check whether the movie had ended, and realized he'd completely missed the last part while his brain was building its bizarre analogy. He blinked twice, bringing himself to the present as Asahi went for a glass of water standing at the at the bottom of the bed.  
“That. Was. Wild.” Asahi sighed as he lowered the glass from his lips. “Where do you even find stuff like this?”  
“I spend the better part of my Math classes fucking around on the beloved interwebs.” Nishinoya yawned, snapping the lid of the laptop shut.  
“And then you have to go ask other people like Aone to tutor you so you don't fail?” Asahi smirked in amusement as he leaned against the shelf next to the bed.  
“Uh, wrong, i ask him to tutor me so I can flirt. Come on, Asahi, it's like you don't know me at all.”  
“I still don’t know what you see in him, he kind of looks like a blond bulldog.” Asahi shrugged.  
“Oh, Asahi. You wouldn’t understand because you don’t have an observant eye.” Nishinoya sighed, standing up on the bed and stretching, before reaching over to pet Asahi’s head condescendingly.  
“It’s observant enough to tell he really is kind of ugly.”  
“And yet it isn’t observant enough to look at where the real treasure is.” Nishinoya raised an eyebrow suggestively as he purposefully directed his gaze at Asahi’s crotch to make his point, though quickly regretting it as he realized he hadn’t wanted to look there at all because now he had to think hard about not thinking hard about it. Asahi missed his internal crisis as fake gasped.  
“Nishinoya Yuu, are you objectifying that man?” He asked seriously, drawing such a convincingly shocked look on his face that it would have had most actors in Broadway running for their money.  
“You can bet your ass I am, and I’m going to touch that base by the time the Calculus I final comes, my friend.”  
“I’m less distraught that you’re prioritizing sex with a canine over your math test than I am at that shitty pun on baseball, Noya.” Asahi facepalmed in front of him sighing as he dramatically bumped his head on the wall to demonstrate his frustration. Nishinoya laughed loudly, punching at the taller man’s shoulder.  
“Come on, it was funny.”  
“Yes, in the 1900’s maybe, when the first person to ever think of it said it.” Asahi gave him a pointed look, which Nishinoya returned with a pointed tongue. He giggled as Asahi chuckled and pulled him into a sort of tackle hug that he only did when Nishinoya was being a shithead, and he smiled into it and leaned his head on the older man.  
“So,” He started, “Do you still have that oversized T-shirt I always sleep in, or am I going to have to sleep naked?” He grinned up at Asahi, the smile faltering a little as he noticed Asahi’s sheepish smile.  
“Actually…Aiko’s coming to sleep over…”  
“...On our movie night?” Nishinoya asked, actively refraining from furrowing his brows as he pulled away from Asahi’s hold.  
“Y-yeah. Well, it’s not because it’s specifically our movie night, it’s more like, she’s been sleeping here almost every night and all. I’m sorry Noya, but you know, I really like her and because we’re both in engineering we don’t get to spend a lot of ti-”  
“Yeah, I know. It’s not like the only time you’re ever apart is when you’re taking a dump.” Nishinoya retorted before he could process what his mouth was saying, as his brain switched to autopilot. He was hopping down to the floor and walking towards his beat-up sneakers next, his hands quickly working at tying their laces before he walked towards his laptop and slipped it into its sleeve, his other hand grabbing for his backpack. All the while, he didn’t look at Asahi, whose face was scrunched up in a pained look that closely resembled that of a constipated person. He wanted to say that to him, when he finally glanced over and noticed the way the man was looking at him, but before he could speak at all, a knock on the door broke the silence for them. He saw Asahi start to go for the door, and he knew what he’d try to do next. He’d try to talk to Aiko outside, explain the situation, and try to fix this to keep Nishinoya happy, and he was having none of it right now.  
If Asahi wanted this friendship to turn to shit because of a girl, then he was going to help him do it.  
Nishinoya ran to the door, pushing Asahi out of the way before opening it to reveal Aiko, who didn’t seem surprised by his presence, but seemed a little intimidated by his gaze. That gaze, however, he couldn’t change, as he noticed the shirt she was wearing. It was the same T-shirt he always wore, the one he wore since they were having sleepovers in high school. It was his T-shirt, Nishinoya’s T-shirt, officially termed as such by Asahi’s mother. And now there was a stranger girl wearing it, and he knew Asahi liked it more on her.  
His eyes felt wet, but all he could feel was absolute rage as he turned to give Asahi a betrayed look before he could compose himself. He turned back to Aiko, smiling something wicked as he cocked his head to the side. “Well there you go, your date is here.” His voice sounded foreign to him, like one of those fake-friendly voices employees in skin care shops used, and part of him felt that neither Aiko nor Asahi deserved that treatment. But the other part of him, the bigger part of him, was furious, and he channeled that anger as he pushed past Aiko roughly, storming down the hallway.  
Later, he would think that the worst part of it was that Asahi hadn’t tried to stop him.

“Nishinoya?” A voice broke through the cloud cast over Nishinoya’s brain and he blinked himself back into focus, Hana Misaki’s face coming into focus. The two often sat near each other during Communication Design classes, as a form of solidarity while they tried to survive the harsh remarks of their professor, Dr. Aki. Nishinoya did consider the content of the classes themselves to be good for his soul, because they always had a lot to do, and he didn’t have much snooze time. This time, however, even Aki’s grueling tasks couldn’t keep Nishinoya’s brain from entering emo-zone over what had happened two days ago.  
“Sorry. You were saying something.” He rubbed at his temple, fighting off the tension headache that had developed as he lost hours of sleep and peace from his days as the anger kept relighting within him. A year ago, if someone had asked him if anything Asahi did could ever make him stop talking to the man, he would have told them they were out of luck. But a year ago, Nishinoya hadn’t ever considered the possibility of someone like Aiko entering their lives.  
“What I was saying isn’t important. Look, you’re looking really shabby lately, and no offense, but your editing skills are gone to shit too.” She tapped the screen to point out the hack job he’d done with the spot healing tool. He sighed and Ctrl+Z’d his way back to the original picture while she continued. “I know something’s up. You love this class, even with Aki always giving us shit about life in general.”  
“It’s not important. Just stupid teenage stuff that has no place to happen in college anyway, honestly.” He shrugged, both of them going quiet and pretending to work as Dr. Aki shot them a look from where he was examining another pair’s work. “Also, we really need to finish this or Aki will finish us.”  
“Oh, Aki can get over herself.” Hana rolled her eyes, her hand going for his. “Is this about Asahi? I’ve heard you guys are fighting.”  
“Why is it that everytime we fight, everyone on this campus knows?” He sighs exasperatedly. He had originally found that a sign of the strength of their friendship, how much others believed in their bond. Now he just wanted to be away from it all.  
“Because you guys are like, the light in the darkness. The glimmer of hope, all that drama stuff we human beings dig. And it’s not like you to be apart.”  
“No, it’s not.” He scowled, pulling his hand away from hers as he went back to tapping command shortcuts into his keyboard, this time a lot more focused on the task as he avoided looking at her or talking about the topic at all.  
“You know, that’s how everyone gets when they first get with someone. But it fades away eventually, he’ll come back and you’ll be right where you left off. I promise.” She insisted, searching his face for any relief, but saw none in the poker face he was now sporting. “Nishinoya, you have to have faith in the two of you.”  
“Two of us?” Nishinoya stopped, finally turning his gaze to look at her directly. “Look, Hana. I appreciate the sentiment, but there is no two of us. It’s just Nishinoya Yuu, who used to be real best friends with Asahi Azumane, but each man was always a separate human being. I don’t control his life, but I don’t want his life to control mine either. He doesn’t have time for me, I won’t waste mine on him. Besides, if you knew Asahi at all you’d know he doesn’t do that. If he cares about you, he makes time for you, and if he doesn’t then the most he’ll do is give you a nice smile when he sees you. He doesn’t care, and I’m done caring too, so that little fan club you got there that’s all broken up about this needs to get over it, because this is for real. This fight is for real, and I’m real pissed too, and all I want is to get this stupid task over with so I can go to my room and ignore every member of this dumb college community.”  
Hana’s eyes were blown out in surprise, and Nishinoya’s first thought was good, now she understands, but the next thought, as he looked around and noticed everyone, including Dr. Aki, looking at him, was shit, I meant to whisper that. He tried for a cheeky smile and got no responses, so the next best choice was to turn back to his screen and work silently, until everyone else slowly returned to their work. He could feel Dr. Aki’s disapproving gaze on him at different intervals during the remainder of the class, but what he was more aware of was Hana’s static silence. He knew she definitely hadn’t deserved that rant, but a part of him felt a little freed at having said it.  
Soon enough, they were all packing up their tablets and laptops while Dr. Aki gave them further instructions for the task, due the following class. He listened attentively this time, his brain temporarily cleared of frustrations, and scribbled down the things he had to finish still. As he began to walk out of the hall he felt Hana walk beside him and let her, the two of them reaching the hallway outside before they stopped to face each other.  
“I’m not going to press you into anything. And I know we’re really only interacting in Aki’s class, but if you need someone, I’m here for you, Nishinoya.” Hana smiled sympathetically, her words confusing him a little. He was fighting with a friend, not losing a family member. Still, he smiled back softly, a genuine one, and tapped her upper arm gently.  
“Thank you. And I’m sorry for shouting.” He added.  
“No you’re not, it felt good.” She smirked, laughing as he shrugged and nodded frankly. “Go get some sleep. Or a shower. Or both. Just do something relating to damage control of...this.” She gestured to him.  
“You try to be my friend, and then you offend me so.” He sighed dramatically, grinning for the first time in a while as she laughed. “Okay, I’ll see you around, Hana.” He raised his hand in farewell before turning away, his tired feet guiding him back to his dorm room.

“He’s alive.” He heard someone say as his eyes cracked open, inhaling deeply as he nearly shat himself at the sight of their friends congregated on his roommate’s bed. “Hey, sleeping beauty. You sure drool pretty.” Kooru smirked at him from where he was perched on the bed. He looked a little like a cat watching a helpless mouse, and he felt a wave of creepy nostalgia hit him from high school before he shook it off and rose up.  
“Why the hell are you all in here, and how did you get in here?” He groaned, his right arm supporting his weight as his left hand rubbed his face tiredly. He knew his hair was all over the place, because he’d fallen asleep with it still wet from his shower, but he cared very little about the impressions he gave to these people, and that helped him climb out of bed clad in only his boxer shorts as he waddled to the bathroom.  
“I still don’t understand why you were boxers, Nishinoya. I mean, you know I love you man, but there’s no package to hold in there.” Bokuto commented, laughing and apologizing as Nishinoya tried to slap his head off.  
“They feel nice.” Nishinoya explained, pausing on his journey to the toilet. “There’s space in there.”  
“Space for what?” The grey-haired man frowned.  
“For cave ventilation, man.” Nishinoya grinned, laughing as Bokuto’s face grimaced at the imagery. The man was too conditioned to cisgendered homosexuality, and he would forever make him painfully aware of that. “Okay, but seriously. Why are you all here, I’m too afraid of going to pee and coming back to find my dorm robbed.”  
“Of what, valuable 150 yen secondhand items?” Kooru grinned.  
“Fair point.”  
“Okay, we came to drag your sad ass to the college lights festival tonight so we can party, also so you and Asahi can cut the crap so we can all stop being so awkward.” Kooru explained, the others nodding silently.  
“I’m not making up with him, I’m trying to make a statement here.” Nishinoya pushed himself to his two feet from where he was leaning on the wall. “I’m serious.”  
“We know how serious you are, people told us about your little outburst in Aki’s class.”  
“Is there anything this college does not want to spread around?” Nishinoya groaned as he let his head fall against the wall.  
“Probably not. Anyway, you’re in whether you like it or not, so go take a little tinkle and make yourself look pretty for the festival.” The black-haired man instructed, studying the photos hung around Nishinoya’s roommate’s bed. “Tacky.” He decided as he looked at his picture with his girlfriend.  
“I hate you all.” Nishinoya sang as he turned back to the bathroom, quickly finishing up and brushing his teeth before emerging again. “Can we at least get a little tipsy before we go?”  
“No.” Akaashi said, turning his eyes to look at every member of the group sternly. “It’s a campus festival, not a party in a dorm or frat house. We’re not going to endanger people like that.”  
“Akaashi has soft heart here.” Bokuto said, going for an embrace despite Akaashi’s annoyed scowl. “But he’s right. Not everyone there is consenting and all.”  
“Ugh, I hate it when you’re right, Akaashi.” Nishinoya rolled his eyes, walking towards his dresser and opening it. He waited a few seconds, before glancing back at the men. “You’re not watching me change. Wait outside.”  
“All we wanted was a little sugar, Nishinoya.” Bokuto joked, yelping as Akaashi kicked his calf on their way out. Nishinoya smirked, sighing tiredly as the door closed behind them. He wasn’t sure why he still felt uncomfortable, particularly around other men, while he changed. He’d been out to society since he was thirteen, and had used the showers enough times during high school to be a little more acceptant of the idea, but he still avoided it at all costs.  
Slipping into fresh boy shorts and his binder, he paused briefly to consider his outfit, before sticking with a three-quarter sleeve baseball shirt and a pair of black leggings. Simplicity worked best with the college festivals, since they often led nowhere he found particularly exciting.  
They all made their way to the arena where the music and snacks were and where most of the people were congregated. It was already nighttime, and his inability to make out any faces made him realize he’d forgotten to put on his contact lenses before stepping out.  
“What’s wrong?” He heard Akaashi ask from his left, as he squinted up at the occupants of the stage.  
“I’m just blind right now, so I need you to tell me if I am near any possible death.” Nishinoya replied, his hand touching Akaashi’s forearm briefly to emphasise his need for a guide.  
“I don’t see him around, so I think you’re good.” the taller man replied and Nishinoya snorted.  
“I was talking about death in the form of tripping over wires, but that’s definitely relieving to know.” He sighed. “Are you going to dance?” He asked.  
“Have you ever seen me dance in any event, ever?”  
“Good point.” Nishinoya nodded.  
“Aren’t you?” Akaashi asked.  
“I need alcohol in my system before I do that. And I’m too afraid to go blind into a crowd of people. Do you want to sit?” He asked, turning behind him to try and catch the outline of a chair.  
“Su-” Akaashi was cut off as a defeaning squeal coming from the mic had everyone covering their ears. As they recovered, they saw someone attach the mic to its stand, but Nishinoya only recognized the speaker as the head of their college events committee as she started speaking.  
“Sorry for that, I put my phone too close to it.” She cleared her throat as the muttering went down. “Anyway, as per tradition, we will now start the dance-karaoke segment of our festival. And due to popular demand, I will have to pick out the two most wanted pair from the crowd, rather than go randomly like we usually do.” Oh no. The cringe was coming, Nishinoya could feel it. “So, Nishinoya Yuu-” Oh no. “and Asahi Azumane-” Oh no. “please join us up here!” The crowd cheered, and Nishinoya turned to look desperately at Akaashi, who somehow managed to look amused through his passive expression. He got a shrug in return, and a gentle pat on the back, before he felt himself being pushed forward by people surrounding him.  
Nearly falling forward, he took control of his movement, and started to walk to the stage himself, dragging his feet up the constructed wooden stairs before standing a couple of steps away from the girl. He tried to search for Asahi in the crowd, but failed to do so, and only when he heard the heavy steps hit the stairs did he release a sigh of relief he didn’t know he was holding in. At least he wasn’t ditching him here.  
“Hey,” Asahi said as he stood beside him. “Where are your glasses?” He asked, and of course Asahi would immediately notice Nishinoya’s squinting.  
“I forgot to wear them, and forgot my lenses. Is there anyone in the crowd we should look out for?” He asked as the girl rambled on beside them about the history of the tradition.  
“There’s the headmaster, so try not to flash people or something.” Asahi smiled a little, hoping he’d make Nishinoya smile back, but with no such luck.  
“Let’s just try to get this done with, yeah?” He looked back at the crowd, his heart sinking further. If there was anything he hated with a passion, it was performing in front of a crowd. He felt Asahi reach for his arm and he purposefully moved away from his reach, turning his gaze to look at him.  
“Noya-”  
“Asahi, just sing.” He said. They both accepted their mics from the girl as she handed them to them, glancing at each other unsurely as both of them dreaded what was to come.  
“Your song is: Once Upon a Time, by MariahLynn.” She announced, and both of them widened their eyes as they looked at each other, then grinned. Oh, they did not only know this song. They did not only sing it together often. But they had choreographed a piece for it.  
Nishinoya laughed despite himself as the song started up, both of them assuming their positions, before Asahi cocked his hip to the side at the begining of the hook, using the most high pitched, barbie voice he could muster to say the lines ‘Once upon a time not long ago, I was a hoe’. The crowd under them screamed as the two went about their not-so-classy choreography involving too much twerking, stanky legs, and nae-nae’s than two fully sober grown men should be doing on a stage. Nishinoya laughed as he threw his leg up against Asahi, the taller man catching it as the two pretended to grind against each other like they had practiced, and he could hear more than see a few people die of asphyxiation as they screamed their lungs out.  
He could tell Asahi was having as much fun as he was, and the two followed through the choreographed piece until the song ended, panting for air as they assumed their position in the middle of the stage and bowed to the crowd. As they rose back up, they turned to each other, and before Nishinoya could really say much about it, he was being crushed against Asahi’s chest in a tight embrace. He smiled softly, hugging the older man back and choosing to ignore the aww’s that resounded around them, before they broke away and made their way down the stairs together.  
As they reached the ground again, he turned to look at Asahi, waiting for the older man to say something, hoping it wouldn’t be something that would make him want to punch him.  
“I’m sorry.” Asahi said simply, his shoulders defeated as he looked into Nishinoya’s eyes.  
“For what?” Nishinoya pushed, his arms wrapping against his chest defensively as he stood opposite from the man.  
“For being a dick. For constantly being stupid and hurting your feelings somehow even when you’re always so aware of mine. For really not deserving you as a friend.” He sighed, his eyes searching Nishinoya’s face for forgiveness. Nishinoya couldn’t help the smile from forming on his lips as he realized just how oblivious Asahi could be. How much he could not understand what was going on. So instead he pressed on.  
“And?”  
“And...sorry for letting her use your T-shirt. It is yours. She won’t get to take it again.” Good enough.  
“Okay.” Nishinoya shrugged. “That works. But you’re still an asshole, and you owe me a proper apology in the form of those delicious donuts from the college bakery.” He pointed a threatening finger at the taller man, who laughed.  
“How about I fulfill that debt now?” He asked, making Nishinoya smile even wider as he took him under his arm and pressed him against his side. “I’m feeling a little hungry after all that twerking.”  
“You did twerk like there’s no tomorrow.” Aiko’s voice came from behind them, and the two turned to face her. “May I join you on that donut date? I’m feeling like getting on a little sugar high.”  
“Uh…” Asahi began, the smile melted off his face as he looked down at Nishinoya in concern. The shorter man wanted to say no, really. He wanted to tell her to learn to judge situations, to go make friends, to find a hobby, but in the spirit of healing friendships, he smiled, gently this time, and nodded.  
“Sure. But if you’re a monster that buys anything with raisins or some ungodly thing in it, I will fight you with all of my 5’3 self.” He warned, grinning as she laughed loudly.  
“I promise to god, I am not a psycho.” She raised her hand up as if swearing on the bible, and all three laughed as they made their way to the bakery. Luckily enough, it was still closing in 30 minutes, and they took their place at one of the tables in the back as they placed their 20 donut box onto the table.  
“Who’s going to eat all this?” Aiko wondered as she picked out one of the donuts and broke a piece of it off.  
“Oh, Aiko. There are many things you don’t know about the two of us.” He grinned as he exchanged a look with Asahi, the look that signified the beginning of a donut eating competition. Screaming as Asahi already started to stuff his face with a cinnamon roll, Nishinoya quickly grabbed two Jelly donuts, eating them at a speed he knew his digestive system would regret later. The sound of Aiko’s laughter spurred both of them on, and as Asahi ate the last bit of his ninth donut -a few seconds before Nishinoya was going to finish his own, he will always argue- he let out a muffled cheer, his fists pumping into the air. He turned to grin at Aiko, jelly, chocolate, and powdered sugar covering his face, and as the two exchanged a kiss in front of Nishinoya he looked away and out of the window, the twinge in his heart blanketing the laughter that had been bubbling up, as he realized he had to find a way to deal with all this, either by letting go of his feelings for Asahi (unlikely) or by finding another outlet for his frustration (more likely), for the sake of maintaining at least the one thing he did have with Asahi, the moments like this, even if it meant letting Aiko enter the picture too.  
For the first time in their college lives since they began the twenty-donut box tradition, the maximum number was nine donuts each instead of ten, and for the first time in their lives, Nishinoya got up to leave, with the remainder of his donut left forgotten on his sugar sprinkled plate.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM FINALLY FREE OF THE IB (International Baccalaureate, aka the actual devil in the form of an academic program).
> 
> Now I have the time to write this. I had a little bit of this chapter written way back in March, but I just picked it up while on a bus to Amsterdam with only 3 hours of sleep to my name. That means that, if you see any sloppy writing/bad grammar, I can honestly blame it on the lack of sleep.
> 
> This fanfiction is really only ever going to be dramatic and EXTRA, so seriously, don't expect the pettiness levels to go down. Also, the alien conspiracy movie mentioned is called The Fourth Kind and it really is creepy, do check it out. And finally, I do not apologize for using MariahLynn's _Once Upon a Time_ , because it is my guilty pleasure.
> 
> Feel free to talk to me over here or over on tumblr (@nishinoice), and if you have any suggestions for more juicy drama please supply them, I'm a sucker for this mess lmao.
> 
> Finally, I think it's important to point out that I don't think anyone should ever annoy a trans person about what they wear. I'm a trans-man myself, and I've had cis guys ask me that question about boxers and that's why I decided to insert it. Even friends who jokingly do it, do it, and I imagine Bokuto is the kind of person who would be loud about curiosities like that, even if they're not really sensitive. Still, please don't just randomly ask a trans person questions like this! I am personally not really sensitive and always welcome any curiosity, questions, etc, but I know that a lot of trans people don't appreciate it. So, this has been a little disclaimer/info packet. I really hope that was not triggering to anyone though. Please let me know if it was.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! This is my attempt at getting back to writing after a 2-year hiatus due to insane college life. Anyway, this was inspired by the Bollywood movie Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which is an _amazing_ movie that everyone should check out tbh. A lot of things in this story will allude to that movie as a not-so-subtle appreciation of its genius.
> 
> I have made Japanese college seem a lot like American college, sorry about that. I haven't really been exposed to the Japanese college system, and the American one serves the plot a lot better. I hope no one wants to stab me now.
> 
> Most of the characters are in some field of engineering, or definitely have something to do with design. I did find the idea of arsty Noya super cool though, so I'm going with it.
> 
> Anyway, as you can tell by the petty ass jealousy towards the end, this fic will be getting HELLA petty and cray, because that's my element. If you wanna keep up with me -in case I make a disappearing act again- or just want to send me suggestions or bond over cray life, just find my anime tumblr @nishinoice. 
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this! I'll hopefully come back with a second chapter soon.


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